What the Bible says about light and seed

The True Light "In him, (the Lord Jesus) was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world,…the world didn’t recognize him." John 1:4,9.

The Good Seed and the Weeds “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seeds in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.”Matthew 13:24,25.

Thursday, July 6, 2017

Pastor Lauds Liberation Theology by Bashing Atonement

Reposted from juicyecumenism.com The Middle East has always been an excellent place to
examine the explosive relationship of competing political interests and
religious identities. Specifically, it makes an excellent case study in
examining how competing convictions influence or interfere with one’s
interpretation of Scripture.

On April 21, 2017, Pastor Mitri Raheb, the Palestinian Senior Pastor of a Lutheran church in Bethlehem, spoke at St. Olaf College
on the relationship between religion and politics in the Middle East.
His comments indicate the growing danger of letting identity politics
(manifest under the guise of liberation theology) determine one’s
interpretation of Scripture.

During his talk, Raheb primarily focused on interpreting recent
Israeli/Palestinian events and Bible passages through the Liberation
Theology point of view. Liberation theology misconstrues Scripture and
the surrounding world by emphasizing the pursuit of political ends and
means to achieve complete social equity.

Contextualizing his lecture, Pastor Raheb began by comparing the
Jewish government to Saddam Hussein’s authoritarian dictatorship in
Iraq. He accused Israel of using religious texts to secure domestic
sovereignty and feign legitimacy in the international community. He then
proceeded to label fellow Christians as “Zionists” who were “sent” by
the Jews to defend their state under the pretext of horrifically
misguided eschatology while they callously ignore the plight of the
Palestinian people.

Turning then to Scripture, Raheb offered his own interpretation of Jesus’ death on the cross (emphasis added):

“We have for too long tried to spiritualize the notion of
liberation in the Bible. We’ve replaced liberation with salvation and
the cross became nothing but atonement. I think we have to put
the cross in its original context of political and religious violence….
The cross is a permanent reminder of the millions of people who are
persecuted either by the state or by the religious establishment because
they raise their prophetic critique to an unjust ruler or to a corrupt
form of religion.”

It’s not often that a self-proclaimed Christian uses the phrase
“nothing but atonement” with a pejorative connotation. Atonement by
Jesus Christ was the single greatest act of self-sacrificial love the
world has ever known. It satisfied around four thousand years of
prophecy and a covenant made by the living infinite God who chose to
make Himself known to a fallen, finite creation. Thinkers, writers, and
philosophers alike have pontificated on atonement for hundreds of years.
Jesus died a humiliating, excruciating death on the cross at the hands
of both Jewish and Roman people because that was how it was prophesied
in the Old Testament (e.g., Psalm 22:16-18, Isaiah 53).

Paul was very clear in Romans 6:3-7 when he stated that the cross was meant to liberate God’s people from the tyranny of sin and death. Or again in Romans 8:3,
“By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning
sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,” implying that the cross was the
ultimate defeat of eternal slavery to sin.

Raheb concluded his defense of liberation theology by interpreting the Pentecost story in Acts 2 as a celebration of diversity
because the disciples were able to speak in visitors’ native tongues. A
simple glance over this passage shows that this assertion is simply not
true. The disciples were given the ability to speak in many different
languages (in the first case of multilingual evangelism) to the Jews who
had not yet heard the good news. The Jewish people with their different
languages and nationalities were united under their common ethnic and
religious background. There is no normative indication anywhere in the
passage that would indicate that “diversity is strength,” as Rahab
argues.

I agree with Mitri Raheb’s approach to observe modern conflict in a
political and religious light. One cannot and should not separate the
two for fear of oversimplifying, misunderstanding, and misdiagnosing one
of the longest running conflicts in human history. But Mr. Raheb’s
identity politics and liberation theology have done just that.

Raheb wove an implicit line of logic throughout the whole lecture:
because modern Jewish people are not the ancient Israelites of the
Bible, they have no “spiritual” claim over contested Palestinian land.
And since ancient Israel’s only purpose was to prepare for the Messiah,
there is no need for a Jewish state anymore. Any argument to preserve a
physical Jewish state would, therefore, be a Zionist misinterpretation
of prophecy and an act of oppression to the Palestinian people.

Pastor Raheb has allowed his political identity as a Palestinian to
precede and outweigh his identity as a Christian. This became evident in
how he blatantly ignores huge portions of Scripture and facts to
support his case for liberation theology.

I will not waste the readers’ time in recounting the “New Zionist” position, but rather direct them to a better defense of it than I could provide in this limited space (or a fascinating read if
they so desire). Without dissecting the details, Israel, and more
importantly, the Jewish people remain an integral part of God’s
redeeming plan for the world, but without implying that the Lord is
waiting on us to immanentize the eschaton.Several facts stand in defiance of Pastor Raheb’s assertions. First, geneticists have revealed evidence
that modern Jewish people are in fact descendants of the ancient
Israelites of the Bible. Distinct Jewish people groups from all over the
world share genetic legacy (not just cultural or religious identity)
originating in the Middle East dating back 2,000 years.

And if one believes in the inerrancy and timelessness of Scripture,
it would be hard to ignore the numerous passages that indicate that the
second coming of Christ will involve a unified Jewish state (Zech. 12:5-9, Luke 13:34-35, and Romans 9 & 11 to name a few).

It is only through God’s outpouring and overflowing of grace onto the
Jewish people that Gentiles are also given grace by extension (Romans 1:16).
The same grace available to the Jews is available to the Palestinians.
Yet Pastor Raheb seems to be so caught up in idolizing his own primary
identity as a Palestinian that his view and reception of grace have been
warped.

That is the greatest danger of identity politics. Though identities
are personally meaningful and powerful in shaping worldviews, they are
immaterial in the eternal light of salvation. Liberation theology,
specifically, seeks to undermine salvation and spiritual needs by
replacing them with material needs and social vendetta.

The relationship between religion and politics is a tangled one. It
is often hard to define where one stops and the other starts (or whether
the two ought to be mixed at all). But what is undeniable is that if
you’re going to claim Christianity as your religion, it must be your
first and most important identity. Any party identity, political belief,
or doctrinal interpretation must always be filtered through the
ultimate and omniscient authority found in the Holy Bible. There will
never be a characteristic that can outshine the salvation bestowed by
grace alone.

A Christmas Reflection from the Light Seed

This is a Christmas message that I repost every year because of its timelessness. I hope that it will bless you and that the seeds of love, truth, hope and joy planted in your heart by the Lord will flourish as Aaron´s almond rod of authority and service and nourish the hungry and thirsty around us.

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Copyright. Droits d'Auteurs. Rediffusion. Direitos Autorais

I claim no right as an author. I didn't create the mind, my brain, my hands, nor any of my senses through which I perceive the world around me. Therefore, I invite anybody if you see any benefit or blessing in the posts, to print, reproduce or distribute the contents of this blog I wrote personally. Jesus said: "Freely you have received, freely give". John the Baptist said: "One can receive only what has been given him from above". I would suggest you ask for spiritual discernment with checking in the Word of God what is right, true, noble, pure, lovely, beneficial as coming from God. I am just offering and sharing free of any restrictions the things that I deem worthy of passing on to any one willing to spend a little time and walk with me along life's highway so we can learn and grow together. Give thanks to and Praise God for the wonderful things he has done.

The Joshua Tree - An original parable/allegory by this blogger.

Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called upon the name of the LORD, the Eternal God (Genesis 21:33). Here is old Abraham just planting a tree and living by his well. Why are we told this? It is symbolic of what is taking place in his heart and life. The tree immediately brings to mind Psalm 1, which says the man of God will be like a tree planted by rivers of living water, bringing forth its fruit in season. Here is a life that is fruitful, that is concerned about those immediately around and is pouring out blessing into their lives and hearts. Excerpts from Ray Stedman´s devotion: "This Thirsty World" https://www.raystedman.org/daily-devotions/genesis-12to25/this-thirsty-world

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Excellent Free Bible Software

Now you can download an excellent Bible software on your PC and/or your USB flash drive. It contains easy to navigate and efficient interface, free add-ons modules, Bibles in English, foreign languages, Dictionaries, Commentaries, everything you need to help you study the Bible.

Testimony/Sermon of an Abortion Survivor

SUICIDE WATCH

I am sure most of you have known at some time in your life a person who wanted or attempted to end their life or succeeded in doing so. Personally, I have known a number of such people. I, myself had such an episode as an adolescent.

More and more I am reading and hearing about people young, old, male, female, gender and age don´t matter that add their lives to this problem of epidemic proportion in our society. Whatever the cause, we can all do something however small to save lives.

No need to have a psych. degree or to be licensed. An understanding heart, a listening ear is sometimes all that it takes to help weaker, more sensitive people overcome the hopelessness that drives fellow human beings to discard the gift of human life.

Please, take a few minutes to read below the few examples and testimonies about suicide. And please pass it on, if that´s all you feel inclined to do. Thank you.

HE INVITES SUICIDE JUMPERS FOR A CUP OF TEA

Don Ritchie moved to a house outside Sydney, Australia, for the clifftop view. But soon he was stopping suicides by inviting potential jumpers inside for a cup of tea.

Don Ritchie has been awarded a medal for bravery and an Order of Australia (the nation’s second highest honor) for averting hundreds of would-be suicides by approaching people and offering them a cup of tea. ‘I used to sell kitchen scales and bacon cutters,’ he says. Now, ‘I’m trying to sell people life.’